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Abstract

We describe an efficient Er:YAG laser that is resonantly pumped using continuous-wave (CW) laser diodes at 1470 nm. For CW lasing, it emits 6.1 W at 1645 nm with a slope efficiency of 36%, the highest efficiency reported for an Er:YAG laser that is pumped in this manner. In Q-switched operation, the laser produces diffraction-limited pulses with an average power of 2.5 W at 2 kHz PRF. To our knowledge this is the first Q-switched Er:YAG laser resonantly pumped by CW laser diodes.

Fig. 4 (Left) Plot of the measured beam size of the output of the Q-switched laser at an average output power of 2.5 W (dots), and the M2 = 1.04 curve of best fit. (Right) Intensity profile of the laser output.